Safety leadership training: Implementation and effectiveness evaluation in the dairy farm industry

Background: Evidence-based interventions for
the prevention of safety incidents at work are most effective
when they include a focus on the hierarchy of controls.
However, prior studies addressing the effects of safety
leadership and safety climate are limited. The determination
and adoption of evidence-based interventions specifically
in the U.S. Agricultural, Forestry, and Fishing (AgFF)
sector can be a challenge, and prior studies have shown a
paucity of evidence-based occupational safety and health
practices in the AgFF sector. Methods: We enrolled 73 dairy
farm supervisors from 27 U.S. farms to participate in a
12-module dairy leadership training program. We employed
the Kirkpatrick Model (KM) to evaluate different levels of
training effectiveness. Findings: Participant reactions to
the program were positive (KM level 1), and evaluation of
knowledge gained among participants revealed 90% had
learned new safety leadership information (KM level 2) that
could be applied in their role as a dairy farm supervisor (KM
level 3). Nearly 88% reported favorable experiences during
their training participation. Post-training group interviews
with supervisors (n = 21) provided information regarding
training experiences and constructive feedback regarding
opportunities for training improvement. Behavior change
evaluation revealed nearly 50% of observed safety hazards
on farms were related to livestock handling (21.6%), trips/
falls (17.1%), and moving machinery (10.4%). The largest
percentage of observed workplace conflicts were verbal
(27.8%). Conclusions/Application to Practice: The application
of the Kirkpatrick Model of training evaluation suggests
participating dairy farm supervisors had positive experiences
with the training program, and acquired safety hazard and
workplace conflict identification skills.